If you walk into a pub or a restaurant by the port, chances are you’ll find a painting with a large ship or a boat showing right in the middle. However, if you walk into a painting class or walk in on one of your family members practicing their painting skills, then you might actually find the very same scene. So, why is it that maritime art and ships are such a popular topic among painters?

From an artistic standpoint, the sea and the ships that navigate it actually carry a lot of weight. The uneven motion of the sea and the smooth edges of a ship’s contour makes it possible to almost capture the movement of the waves and the ship that passes through them in even a beginner’s painting or drawing. Simply put, ships look very artistic almost regardless of who is drawing them.

Another reason why maritime art is so popular has to do with symbols. From a symbolic perspective, ships carry even more weight. They can be regarded as symbols of life and of the artist’s journey through the troubled ocean of life. They can also be seen as a person’s willingness or determination to take charge of their life and navigate that ocean despite the fact that they are constantly faced with agitated waves and the peril of being lost at sea.

The Great Lakes at the border between USA and Canada are five in number. From west to east, they are: Lake Superior, Lake Huron, Lake Michigan, Lake Erie and Lake Ontario. They were formed approximately 12,000 years ago when glaciers started to melt.

These lakes hold a huge proportion of the total surface freshwater of the North American continent – 84%. And each of them has its specific particularities. Let us discover the most unexpected and fun facts about the Great Lakes.

1. Lake Superior Does Not Behave Like a Lake

It is more like an inland sea, because it has tides. It also holds enough water (3,000,000 million gallons) to cover both North and South America with 1 foot of fresh water.

2. Lake Erie Allegedly Harbors a Monster

The monster named Bessie was described as having between 30 and 40 feet in length. It was first sighted in 1973. Alas, only inconclusive and grainy photos exist of it, making Bessie as elusive as the more famous Nessie monster of Loch Ness.

3. Lake Huron Hides a Few Secrets

One of them is a complex of animal-herding structures which are approximately 9,000 years old. Prehistoric humans used to inhabit the area of the lake before the glaciers melted.

Lake Huron also has massive sinkholes with a combination of chemical and organic substances that replicate ocean conditions of 3 million years ago.

Maritime History in Art is the place to go for paintings by artist Jim Clary depicting the Great Lakes, famous shipwrecks, and other beautiful pieces of nautical art.